SUBSTANCE OR CONTAMINATION DETECTION

• US 20170002394A1
• Filed: 03/13/2015
• Published: 01/05/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/14/2014
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Veritide Limited
• Original Assignee: Veritide Limited
• Inventors: Tuffnell, Craig Simon, Boulton, James Martin, Choi, Joon Koo
• Application Number:
  US15/125,618
• Publication Number:
  US 20170002394A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: C12Q 1/04 Determining presence or kind of microorganism; Use of selective media for testing antibiotics or bacteriocides; Compositions containing a chemical indicator therefor C12Q1/6897 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/44 Raman spectrometry; Scattering spectrometry ; Fluorescence spectrometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01J 3/4406 Fluorescence spectrometry
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2021/6421 Measuring at two or more wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/6456 Spatial resolved fluorescence measurements; Imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 21/94 Investigating contamination, e.g. dust G01N21/85 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 2201/129 Using chemometrical methods
• CPC Class Codes: G01N 33/12 Meat; Fish
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/693 Acquisition

Abstract

A spectroscopic method and system detects the amount of one or more substances or contaminants in or on a product, such as fecal contamination on meat samples.

Claims

5-1. The method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 4 wherein the predetermined information relates to:

first and second isolated product signals indicative of the light emitted from the isolated (uncontaminated) product across the first and second wavebands respectively in response to optical excitation, and

for each of the one or more isolated substances or contaminants, first and second isolated substance or contaminant signals indicative of the light emitted from the isolated substance or contaminant within the first and second wavebands respectively in response to optical excitation.

22. A method for determining or predicting the amount of one or more substances or contaminants in or on an illuminated product, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving at least one signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a waveband, and

determining or predicting the amount of each, or at least one, of the one or more substances or contaminants in or on the product by separating a portion of the emitted signal relating to the substance or contaminant from the overall signal emitted from the product based on fluorescent behaviour of the substance or contaminant in isolation from the product and/or based on the fluorescent behaviour of the product or a main or more abundant substance of the product in isolation from the substances or contaminants (hereinafter referred to as isolated product).

23. The method as claimed in claim 22 wherein the step of receiving at least one signal comprises:

receiving a first signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a first waveband,

receiving a second signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a second waveband and containing one or more wavelengths associated with the fluorescent properties of the contaminants or substances to be detected,

24. The method as claimed in either claim 22 or claim 23 wherein the second waveband is within the first waveband.

25. The method as claimed in either claim 22 or claim 23 wherein the second waveband is outside the first waveband.

26. The method as claimed in any one of claims 22 to 26 wherein the step of determining or predicting the value indicative of the amount of the substance or contaminant comprises separating from the first signal a portion of the signal relating to the substance or contaminant based on:

the second signal, the fluorescent behaviour of the substance or contaminant in isolation from the product and the fluorescent behaviour of the isolated product.

27. The method as claimed in any one of claims 22 to 26 wherein the method further comprises determining or predicting a value indicative of an amount of a main or more abundant substance of the product by separating from the first signal a portion of the signal relating to the main substance based on:

the second signal, the fluorescent behaviour of each isolated substance or contaminant and the fluorescent behaviour of the isolated product.

32. A device for determining an amount of one or more substances or contaminations in or on a product, the device comprising:

a memory component for storing data indicative of predetermined information relating to fluorescence behaviour of a same or similar product or a main or more abundant substance of the product isolated from a substance or contaminant (hereinafter referred to as isolated product) and/or relating to the fluorescence behaviour of each of the one or more substances or contaminants isolated from the product, and

a processor configured to;

receive a first signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a first waveband,

receive a second signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a second waveband and containing one or more wavelengths associated with the fluorescent properties of the contaminants or substances to be detected,

determine or predict a value indicative of an amount of each, or at least one, of the substance or contaminant, in or on the product from the first and second signals and from the predetermined information.

33. The device as claimed in claim 32 wherein the second waveband is within the first waveband.

34. The device as claimed in claim 32 wherein the second waveband is outside the first waveband.

35. The device as claimed in any one of claims 32 to 34 wherein the device further comprises a light source for generating a beam of light.

36. The device as claimed in any one of claims 32 to 35 wherein the device further comprises:

a first band pass filter arranged to filter a light beam and having a first operative waveband associated with the first waveband, and

a second band pass filter arranged to filter a light beam and having a second operative waveband associated with the second waveband.

37. The device as claimed in claim 36 further comprising first and second photomultiplier tubes adjacent to the first and second filters respectively, for receiving filtered light beams from the first and second filters and outputting the first and second signals indicative of light intensities to the processor respectively.

38. The device as claimed in either claim 36 or claim 37 wherein further comprising an optical fibre cable coupled to the light source for transmitting light out of the device and onto the product and for transmitted light emitted from the product to the first and second filters.

39. The device as claimed in claim 38 wherein the cable is optically coupled to a lens element adjacent the product.

40. The device as claimed in claim 39 wherein the lens is arranged to yield an excitation light beam from a central excitation fibre of the fibre cable onto a region of interest on the product in one direction and yield an emission light beam emitted from the product into emission fibres of the fibre cable in an opposite direction.

41. The device as claimed in any one of claims 35 to 40 further comprising a camera lens configured to receive light emitted from the product in response to excitation from the light source and output an image signal.

42. The device as claimed in claim 41 wherein further comprising a beam splitter configured to divide the image signal into a first and second channel.

43. The device as claimed in claim 42 wherein further comprising a first image sensor with a first optical filter associated with the first channel and a second image sensor with a second optical filter associated with the second channel, wherein a first optical filter is arranged to filter the output image signal based on a first operative waveband, and the second optical filter is arranged to filter the output image signal based on a second operative waveband, the second waveband being within the first waveband.

44. A system for determining an amount of one or more substances or contaminations in or on a product, the system comprising:

a light source for illuminating the product with excitation light, and

a light detector for determining the amount of one or more substances or contaminations in or on a product, the detector having;

a memory component for storing data indicative of predetermined information relating to fluorescence behaviour of a same or similar product or a main or more abundant substance of the product isolated from a substance or contaminant (hereinafter referred to as isolated product) and/or relating to the fluorescence behaviour of each of the one or more substances or contaminants isolated from the product, and

a processor configured to;

receive a first signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a first waveband,

receive a second signal indicative of intensity of light emitted from the product across a second waveband and containing one or more wavelengths associated with the fluorescent properties of the contaminants or substances to be detected,

determine or predict a value indicative of an amount of each, or at least one, of the substance or contaminant, in or on the product from the first and second signals and from the predetermined information.

45. The system as claimed in claim 44 wherein the second waveband is within the first waveband.

46. The system as claimed in claim 44 wherein the second waveband is outside the first waveband.